A quick recap of the Parachute Project

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Over the weekend, I attended the Parachute Project's second pop-up venture, "The Ballad of Broken Chandeliers" in the former Tower Theater. I so appreciate the aims of the co-organizers of the show, Ella Dwyer, Makeal Flammini and Jes Myszka, to bring attention to neglected buildings and patches of the urban landscape, to create novel environments for exhibiting art and to bring new audiences together.

This trio of women bring such enthusiasm to what they do. This is clear. But perhaps it's time to take a moment and look at how things are panning out so far.

The most recent exhibit featured the work of Della Wells, Adam McKee, Molly McKee, Rodriel Tramell and the collaborative work of Charles Dwyer and Jerry Pfeil. There was also a performance by Dead Mans Carnival, and Mike Brenner showed his support by having the coming out of Brenner Beer and sharing samples.

I'm not sure that either of the group's first two forays did justice to the art that they presented. Much of the work was poorly lit and hung, making the work difficult to experience. Dwyer and Pfeil's work -- which is fantastic -- was perhaps the only body of work hung in a way that could be seen for what it is. Wells' petite works, which I also like, were lost on the crimson colored walls, and the works of the McKees and Trammell felt like decoration (which, of course, they are not) for the expansive and beguiling theater space.

The truth is, as Art City contributors Adam Carr and Sara Mulloy first pointed out in their preview of the show, working with a space that is so rife with history and personality is a hard business. It comes with both pitfalls and opportunities.

Every group has to find it's own approach, its own solutions to these kinds of unique challenges. With that said, I do wonder if the Parachute Project organizers might find some inspiration by exploring the history of temporary art projects which address historic buildings and blighted areas here in Milwaukee. The efforts of In:Site, a temporary public art advocacy group, the University of Wisconsin-Milaukee's architecture school's temporary public art projects, Paul Druecke's Art Street Window projects and the Rust Spot projects come immediately to mind. In each of these instances, the groups worked with artists to create site-specific works. They didn't insert existing work into old spaces.

I'd love to see this effort succeed. I'd love to see Parachute reach a new level of seriousness and pick up where some of these previous projects left off. But the Parachute Project will need to refine its approach or run the risk of staging what appears to be parties where the art is merely incidental.

Did you attend the event? Share you own reactions with Ella, Makeal and Jes below.

About Mary Louise Schumacher

Mary Louise Schumacher is the Journal Sentinel's art and architecture critic. She writes about culture, design, the urban landscape and Milwaukee's creative community. Art City is her award-winning cultural page and a community of more than 20 contributing writers and artists. Follow her on Facebook and Instagram.

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